Arrest in Wayne County Homicide

A west Alabama man is facing charges for murdering his estranged wife in Mississippi.

Anthony Pace is accused of gunning down his wife while she was driving.

With law enforcement by his side, Anthony Pace slowly made his way into the Choctaw County Courthouse in Butler, Ala., Friday morning for an extradition hearing. When asked by Newscenter 11 for a response to the murder charge, he remained silent.

The 25-year-old is accused of gunning down his estranged wife, 22-year-old Amber Andrews of Waynesboro, on Highway 84 outside Waynesboro. The shooting is thought to have happened around 3 p.m. Thursday in the Beat Four Community.

According to investigators, Andrews was shot at least once while driving in a car alone; this caused her to wreck. Officials say she was pronounced dead at the scene.

About an hour after Andrews' accident, Pace was discovered just across the state line in neighboring Choctaw County, Ala.

"We dispatched deputies to Mr. Pace's mother's house," says Choctaw County Sheriff Tom Abate. "Mr. Pace was there sitting on the front porch where he was taken into custody without incident."

Once back at the Choctaw County Sheriff's Department, Abate said the suspect revealed key information.

"Mississippi authorities interviewed him; advised him of his rights," said Abate. "He gave us a statement; told us where the weapon was that was used in the homicide. We went back to his mother's residence with a Choctaw County deputy and Mississippi authorities and recovered the weapon."

Investigators with the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation say they are awaiting autopsy results to determine Amber Andrews exact cause of death. A spokesperson for MBI says those results could be available within the next week. Meanwhile, Warren Strain with MBI says it could take a week or longer to determine if the gun used in the case was the gun that was recovered from Pace's parents' home outside Gilbertown, Ala.

Newscenter 11 has learned that Pace and Andrews were married late last year, but were separated at the time of the shooting.

According to Alabama records Pace has previously faced charges for domestic violence in at least two Alabama counties.

After Friday's extradition hearing in Butler, Pace was transported back to Wayne County. The next time he will appear before a judge will be Feb. 23 in Wayne County Circuit Court for a bond hearing. That's set for 10 a.m.

Pace's case could possibly be presented to the next Wayne County grand jury in July. In Mississippi the maximum penalty for a murder conviction is life in prison.

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